Come On
by meganrawrrr
Summary: Caroline is an A college student, student council president, and all around good girl. Klaus is a gear head who flies just south of legal in most areas of his life. When they meet through a mutual friend, will they be able to find a friendship despite their differences? Multiple pairings, AU, AH.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi! This is the first thing I have written and actually published to FanFiction, so be kind. :) I write quite a bit as a hobby, but have never publicly shared anything. This is just an idea that has been floating around in my head forever, begging to be written. It's a Klaroline fic, since they are my OTP, forever. It will have a few other pairing thrown in, but with a heavy focus on Klaus and Caroline. Some parts and characters will seem a bit OOC, and it is definitely AU, but I'm taking the idea my muse has created and running with it. It's all human and all awesome. Not all of the chapters will be super long, I have quite a bit of the story written, but not all edited, so I will post as I edit, then write and edit some more. I will try to post regularly, but I have a full time job and go to school full time, plus manage a household. Give the first two chapters a whirl to get acquainted with the background stories, then we will jump into the meat and potatoes of the story. Let me know what you think! :) None of the characters belong to me unless otherwise stated (obviously).**

"Come on, Care!" Bonnie exclaimed, "If you don't go, I'll end up being the third wheel!" Caroline rolled her eyes. Bonnie had been begging her to go out all week.

"It's not my fault Elena was able to guilt you into going. I stood my ground!" She said with a smile.

"Oh, come on. The semester ends next month. We both turn 21 a few weeks after that. We should be celebrating this time in our lives! What could be more important than living in the present before we get out for summer?"

"Uh.. finals!? That's pretty important. Plus, I've got student council stuff to prepare for the semester end, and I've got to rehearse for tomorrow night at the coffee shop. All of those seem more important that a night out with Elena and her latest squeeze." She knew Bonnie didn't really want to go, but Elena had guilted her into it, saying they never spent time together anymore.

It was true. The three of them had grown up together in their hometown. They had been inseparable all through high school and had gone off to college together. That's when things started to change. They were still friends, but Elena's world started to revolve around who she was dating at the moment. And at the current moment, his name was Damon something. He was quite a few years older than they were, but for some reason, was always around campus.

"Oh, Damon's not that bad. He is a lot better than the last one." Bonnie tried to defend, but looking at her face, she was obviously not as sure as she wanted to sound.

"Bonnie, did you forget our first semester, when he practically stalked me around campus, claiming to 'coincidentally' run into me? The guy is a creep."

"Okay, I give, I'm not super fond of the guy. But he makes Elena happy for the time being and it sounds like he is making an effort with her. He is trying to get to know us, because we are important to her. It looks like he is getting serious about her. Plus, Elena says she really misses spending time with us. And you can't let me go alone!" She finished her speech with big doe eyes and a pouty lip for emphasis.

"Ugh." Caroline replied exasperated. "Where would we be going, if I were to decide to go?" She asked, knowing that it was losing battle. Bonnie smiled, knowing she was close to winning.

"Elena didn't have all the details, I guess it is some sort of party get together thing. Damon goes all the time, but this is Elena's first time. Another reason she wanted us to go. We are all meeting for a late dinner and drinks, then going from there. She did say to dress sexy." Bonnie had a grin that could rival the Cheshire cat plastered on her face. She loved an excuse to dress up.

"Okay, okay, I"ll go. Classes are done by noon. What time are we meeting?"

"We are meeting Damon for food and drinks at nine, but Elena wanted to do a girls night, pre game party thing, before hand, so I offered my place. She had originally suggested we go to Damon's, but I knew you would never go for that." Bonnie said knowingly.

"Definitely not. Did she already move in with him?" Bonnie and Caroline had both been assigned individual rooms in the same building on campus since they were both in the hospitality program. Elena, however, was a history major, so she was on the other side of campus. The history major dorms were all shared and she hadn't liked any of her roommates yet. It didn't surprise Caroline that she stayed with Damon often, but it seemed a little fast.

"Not officially. She says most of her stuff is there, though. She tries to go back to her dorm as little as possible. I guess her roommate this semester is a real piece of work. She is convinced vampires are out to get her. Elena says she is constantly finding bottles labeled holy water and the room always smells like garlic." Caroline wrinkled her nose at Bonnie's words.

"Ew. That is really gross. But they've been dating for less than three months…" Caroline stressed.

"She says 'when you know, you know' and she says she knows." Bonnie replied with a shrug.

"She has said that about the last few guys, too. But, if she is happy now, that's what matters. Maybe this one will last. Maybe he will be her epic love." Caroline finished with a smile. Bonnie smiled at her. Caroline had always been convinced that everyone had one "Epic Love' out there somewhere.

Caroline slowed her walking as they neared her class. While having only a few of the same classes, most of their classes were in the same building. Caroline was a major in hospitality, with a minor in business management. Her dream was to open her own party planning business.

"Alright, What time are we meeting at your room? And what should I bring?" Caroline asked, smiling. She knew she would probably regret it when she was stressing to get everything finished in an even smaller time slot today, and playing catch up tomorrow, but she missed their girl time, and Bonnie was right, she should make time for fun every so often.

"Let's say around 6? That will give us time to relax for a while and not be hurried while getting ready. And if each of us bring a bottle of wine, that should be plenty. Bring your stuff for hair and makeup. You already know I've got a blow dryer and curling iron and all that stuff, so you don't need to bring that. Bring clothes and we all will pick and choose and share like we used to." Bonnie said, excitedly.

"Okay then, I'll split right after class and hurry to get everything done. That'll give me a few hours, so I shouldn't be too far behind.!" Caroline said happily. She loved it when things worked out. "I'll see you at 6!" She waved at Bonnie as she walked into class.

A few hours later, the teacher dismissed the class, reminding them of the paper they had due Monday by midnight online, and of their exam the following week. Fortunately, this was her only Friday class, and it was only one day a week. Caroline shoved her binder and iPad back into her bag, threw it across her shoulder and made her way out to the common campus area. She had doodled herself a list, broken down by time, while she was in class, and rushed back to her dorm to drop of her school bag and grab her purse. She had a few errands to run for student council, then made a block of time in the afternoon to study. She had pushed rehearsing back because she knew she would do fine without it. She had been playing the guitar and singing since she was old enough to hold the instrument. When she had gotten to college she found it was an excellent way to get extra money and hang out without feeling guilty about not studying.

Time flew by, and the next thing she knew, it was 5:00pm. She tidied up her desk, not wanting to leave it cluttered with all of her study notes and gathered her things, making her way to her floor's community bathroom to shower. Fortunately there was no one else in there at that time of evening, so she had privacy. While the showers themselves were blocked off, she hated having to share the sinks with other girls. It was the only thing she really didn't like about college.

She hopped out of the shower, dressing casually, knowing she would be changing later at Bonnie's, and made her way back down to her room. She combed out her long blonde hair and braided it down her back. Throwing the rest of her things in an overnight bag, including clothes for the rest of the night and next day incase she ended up sleeping at Bonnie's, she ran through her mental checklist of what she needed. When she was satisfied that she had everything, she transferred all the important items from her purse to her small black studded clutch, grabbed the bottle of wine she had bought when she was out earlier (God bless the fake ID's they had gotten freshman year) and made her way out the door.

Taking the elevator down two floors, she checked her phone. 5:59 pm. Right on time. She hated being late for anything. As the time changed to 6:00pm, she knocked on Bonnie's door. She heard the excited squeals of her two best friends on the other side. Elena flung the door open and threw herself out into the hall and onto Caroline.

"Oh my god! I know I just talked to you like two days ago, but I feel like I haven't seen you in forever!" Elena squealed. Caroline hugged her back. Elena's mood seemed to be contagious, as Caroline found herself getting more excited about the time she was to spend with her friends. She allowed Elena to take her hand and pull her into Bonnie's room. Bonnie waved at her from the vanity, where she was turning on her flat iron and curling irons. Her small tv in the corner was on, waiting for a DVD to be inserted. There was a stack of movies on top, all RomComs. IT looked like the beginnings of a slumber party, but she knew better.

"Oh! You brought moscato! My favorite!" Elena exclaimed, taking the bottle from her and opening the mini fridge under the TV. "I think I"m gonna open the white zin that Bonnie has though, let this one chill for a while. Since hers has been in there for a few hours and ours just got put in there. Is that okay with everyone?" Bonnie and Caroline nodded in response, as Bonnie started to grab cups.

Two and a half hours later, the girls were dressed up, hair done, and had finished all three bottles of wine. They had 'Drive Me Crazy", a movie they all had loved through high school, on in the background, while sharing girl talk. Caroline was very happy she had decided to come, she had needed girl time, she thought to herself. The three girls gathered in front of Bonnie's full length mirror, making sure everything looked perfect. While she hadn't originally planned on going all out, being with her two friends had made her want dress it up a bit. Glancing at her outfit, then at her friends, she had to admit, they looked hot. Elena was wearing high heeled military style boots, skinny jeans with the darkest wash making her look longer and leaner than ever, a black zip front crop top with thin straps, and a leather biker jacket that she insisted would be left in Damon's car because of the heat. Her long brown hair was straightened to perfection and she had darkened her makeup quite a bit more than normal to accentuate her big brown eyes and creamy skin.

Bonnie had on a high waisted pencil skirt with a black and white geometric pattern, a pink cap sleeve crop top showing off her ebony skin, and black spiky platform heels, making her tower over them. Her black hair curled down her back with her blunt bangs brushing her eyebrows, with an electric pink lipstick.

Caroline's outfit wasn't quite as dressy as the other girl's, but she was far more comfortable in it. She was wearing coral high waisted shorts, cut nice and high to show off her long, toned legs. Her black and white striped tank top and black studded bootie heels matched her clutch. Her long blond hair curled down her back, while she wore lighter makeup, showing off her bright blue eyes.

The girls grabbed their purses and made their way down to the campus bus. The busses started after dark and were one of the things student council worked so hard to keep running. Their goal was to keep the students from having to drink and drive, and not to have to pay cab fare. There had originally been only two busses, but after coming into office, Caroline had worked hard to secure two more, ensuring that there were busses all over town. The girls boarded the bus that would be going in the direction of the bar and grill where they were meeting Damon shortly. Caroline couldn't wait to finally meet the man Elena had raved so much about and see if he was really that different from her first impression...


	2. Chapter 2

Across town, a thin blonde woman walked across the floors of the house she shared with her brothers, making her way to her youngest brother's room. She had been able to hear his music all the way across the house in her room, and had been making her way from irritated to livid quickly. Upon reaching his room, she pushed the door open, not bothering to knock and saw him sitting at his desk at the far side of the room, his back to her, having yet to notice her. She made his way over to him, peering over his shoulder to take a look at what he was so intently working on. She leaned in, close to his ear and said loudly.

"I take it you are not planning on running tonight, seeing as half of your engine isn't even attached to your car and we have to leave shortly?" Kol jumped and spun around. Rebekah grabbed the remote for the stereo off the desk and turned off his music.

"Knocking is always appreciated, dear sister, but since you tend to ignore niceties, I'll have you know that I will be in tip top shape by the time we leave. I just needed to change out a few bad seals. Last weekend I may have ran too much boost." He replied, with a smirk. "I'll be ready to drop it back in soon and be set to go. What about you, Bekah, planning on going dressed like that? On the hunt, aren't you?" Kol moved quickly to avoid the slap that was coming his way.

"What you do with your car is of little concern for me. Just don't make me late! You know Elijah likes to ride out together to make a good show. I'll not waste half my life waiting for your pathetic excuse of an engine!" Rebekah said, raising her voice higher and higher. She turned and stormed out of his room, but could hear him laughing as she made her way down the hall.

A few floors below the bickering siblings, Klaus wiped off his hands on the shop towel hanging out of his back pocket and pulled his phone out of his pocket, checking the time. 8:00 pm, he needed to get going, he thought to himself. He opened the garage refrigerator, which they kept fully stocked with all their favorites. He had been perfecting his car for the last hour, making sure everything was in tip top order. His cars were his babies, an extension of his family, and his favorite hobby. He grabbed a bottle of New Castle, popped the top off and took a long sip, walking into the house. The smell of dinner came wafting from the kitchen, as his stomach gave an involuntary growl. It was late for dinner and he had forgotten to eat breakfast or lunch. Walking toward the kitchen, he could hear his brother, Elijah, and his brother's long time girlfriend, Katherine playfully bickering about what spices to add. They had been together since they were old enough to notice the opposite sex. Katherine had moved down the street from their parent's house in England when they had been in their very early teens. She was Bulgarian, new to town, and the first girl Elijah had ever really had a strong attraction to. They had been together ever since.

"I hope you cooked enough for everyone." Klaus said, peeking under the lid of the pot on the stove.

"It's spaghetti. I didn't have time for anything fancy, and while you smell like a garage, you better keep your hands out!" Katherine replied, smacking his hand with the spoon she was holding, while she bumped his hip to get him to move.

"Watch it!" He exclaimed, pulling his hand back. "Don't deny it, love, you love me smelling like a man." He winked at her, earning him a glare from Elijah. He had never viewed the girl as anything other than a sister, but he never missed an opportunity to push his brother's buttons by play flirting with Katherine. She laughed at him as she began pulling plates from the cabinet.

"Niklaus, really. You could shower before joining us for dinner." Elijah started.

"Nik, shower? You're joking, brother. Then who would scare all the girls right into my fresh smelling arms?" Kol joked, walking into the room.

"Laugh it up, gents, but each and every one of you smells as delicious as I do at least a few times a week. Even you, Katarina. You may even smell the manliest of all of us." Klaus replied, earning him a spaghetti noodle thrown at his face. The sound of high heels echoed through the spacious open house plan of the mansion they all shared.

"Nik! Why do you still look like a grease monkey? You are coming tonight, I assume? If you're arriving with us, you should have showered and dressed already!" Rebekah walked in, spreading her irritation from Kol to everyone in the room. "And Kat, is that really what your wearing?" She said, eyeing Katherine's cut off denim shorts and white tank top. It was hard to tell that they were best friends as Rebekah's entire demeanor was disapproving. She folded her arms over her chest, causing her white knit top to rise even higher on her flat stomach. She tapped the toe of her nude platform heels, as Katherine rolled her eyes at her, preparing for a response.

"Relax Bekah," Klaus replied, beating Katherine to it, "Katerina and I have plenty of time to dress and be ready. And I promise _we_ won't end up looking like a common harlot when we're done." He said with a smirk, eyeing Rebekah's choice in clothes as Katherine started serving the food. "Why do you even wear those shoes, you always have to change them to drive anyway?" Rebekah gave him an angry glare as Kol laughed into his food.

While Katherine was handing out the plates, Elijah removed his suit jacket and hung it on the back of the chair to avoid stains. Being the oldest, Elijah took his role very seriously, always trying to dress as professionally as he could. The rest of the family gathered around the island bar with Elijah and Kol and began to eat their dinner.

As they finished their dinner, Katherine said "Alright boys, I cooked. You all clean while I get ready. We wouldn't want Bekah to have a premature heart attack. Bekah, you help, so Nik can go get ready, too." She added the last with a smile. Rebekah hated doing dishes, but she hated waiting for her brother's more. The blonde stood up, brushing off her jeans and running her fingers through her long wavy hair. She had french braided the top to keep it out of her face while she drove, but the rest fell down to her mid back.

"Fine, but you need to seriously hurry. I want to get good spots. Fashionably late is our thing, but horribly late is just trashy." She replied, grabbing a towel as Katherine and her two older brother's headed up the stairs to their bedrooms. "I'll dry, you scrub." She added to Kol.

"Sorry, darling, I have a turbo to drop in, or did you forget our earlier conversation." Kol smirked, as he headed toward the stairs to retrieve his car parts, leaving a very disgruntled Rebekah fuming in the kitchen, surrounded by dirty dishes.


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you all so much for such amazing reviews and so many kind words! I was blown away by the response this story got in just two chapters. :) I'm still introducing characters and laying ground work in this next chapter. More to come soon. I still don't own any of the characters, only what they do, obviously. **

After a somewhat awkward dinner, Caroline and Bonnie were finally convinced to ride with Damon and Elena to the party Damon had been bragging about. He seemed to think he had clout there and was excited to show off to the girls. That wasn't quite how he had worded it, but it was how Caroline had seen it all night. He had talked about little else, in between grabbing Elena's butt and making lewd comments when he thought the other girls weren't paying attention. Needless to say, by the end of dinner, Bonnie and Caroline were throwing back drinks a bit faster than they had originally planned. They both agreed that being cramped in the back of Damon's car heading to a secret location, where he would no doubt be more annoying, was at the bottom of the list of things Caroline wanted to do that evening, but Elena had made her big puppy dog eyes and they had submitted.

They made their way out of the bar and up to Damon's car, a bright blue Scion TC that looked like he had driven it through an auto parts store with a magnet attached to it. While Caroline knew that these cars were usually nice, Damon's car looked like he had picked up every flashy part at the store and attached it to his car. While the car itself sat much lower than it should have, only a few inches off the ground, he had bright chrome hub caps that looked like they should have been on a pick up truck, and were way too big for Damon's small car. Even to her untrained eyes, not knowing much about cars at all, Caroline still thought that it looked like Damon had just bought what looked the most expensive and stuck it on his car, regardless of whether or not it looked good . She had seen other cars like this out on the road and always thought they looked a little cheesy, like they were just begging to be seen by everyone around them. Damon opened the driver's side door and pushed his seat forward, motioning for them to get in, as Elena opened her door on the passenger side and climbed into the car.

"All aboard, ladies! Next stop, the best night of your life." Damon said, smirking. Caroline just looked at him, doubt written all over her face.

"Are we going to be safe in there? Does this even have real back seats.." Caroline said, '_or did you have to take them out to make room for your giant head...'_ she finished silently, giving the car a scrutinizing look.

"So much doubt, Barbie. She is a master piece, treat her like it." Damon stroked his hand lovingly across the top of his car before offering his hand to Bonnie to help her climb down into the back seats. Caroline followed suit, ignoring Damon's hand, giving the interior a once over. The over done theme followed through to the inside, including shiny chrome accessories everywhere. She silently criticized it, thinking it still looked like he was trying too hard. She hoped that wherever they were going wasn't filled with more guys like Damon. She may have just have to catch the bus back earlier than she thought. She wondered if she would be able to convince Bonnie to go back with her and hoped wherever he was taking her wasn't too far from one of the bus' pickup spots, so she didn't have far to walk when she escaped.

Damon pushed his seat back into place after Caroline and Bonnie had gotten settled, and climbed in himself. Reaching across the center console, he began pulling straps around Elena, buckling her into a bunch different of straps, creating a harness. '_Making sure she doesn't try to escape'_ Caroline thought darkly to herself.

"Sorry girls, no racing harnesses in the back." Damon said, indicating that the girls should buckle their seat belts. Caroline rolled her eyes at him.

"Planning on needing them?" She asked, none too friendly, as she buckled her self in. The alcohol in her system was letting her forget her manners faster and faster. Elena gave her a somewhat irritated smile.

"Damon drives really fast. It's exciting." She said with a smile, earning her a kiss on the temple from Damon as he finished strapping her in. Caroline was a bit more anxious now, Damon was reckless just walking around, put him behind the wheel of a vehicle and she was sure it would be disastrous. Caroline opened her mouth to voice this concern, but Bonnie elbowed her side and mouthed 'Be nice' at her, to which she shrugged, but kept her mouth shut.

When Damon had finished strapping himself in to a similar harness, he turned the key over and the car roared to life. It was much louder than she was used to, and soon they were on their way to this mysterious location Damon seemed so excited about. She had to admit, Damon appeared to be a pretty good driver, though quite a bit more reckless than she felt it safe for him to be. Not so much because of the actual speed, but more because she just didn't trust Damon. He was reckless and dangerous, not in a sexy way, but in a 'I'll probably get you killed at some point' way. She was ready to be away from him, and by association, Elena, for the night and couldn't wait to get out of the car. Elena kept staring at Damon with an enamored expression, which was making her a bit nauseous. Next to her, Bonnie had her phone out, fingers moving quickly across the screen. Suddenly, she felt her clutch vibrating. Pulling out her phone, she saw that she had a new message from her best friend sitting beside her. 'Try not to look like you're having such a good time ;)' the message read. Caroline smiled at this. Quickly typing her reply of 'Maybe we should just head back', she gave Bonnie a pleading look as she pressed send.

As Bonnie read the text, Caroline could see her rolling her eyes. Caroline felt her phone vibrate again a moment later 'Let's stick it out for an hour, then we will head back if it's awful. We don't even have to ride back with the creep.' Caroline stifled a giggle, but nodded her head in consent. An hour was bearable, and then, if it was still as bad as it was now, she could go home, put on her comfiest PJs and watch some cheesy movies on cable. Besides, once they were out of the confines of just the four of them, the awkward tension was bound to ease up, right...?

After about 15 minutes, Caroline was pulled from her thoughts when she heard a car revving it's engine next to them. Damon turned down his music and she could hear loud music and the sound of squealing tires coming from outside the car. Unable to see through Damon's blacked out windows, she leaned around to look though the windshield . Her eyes widened in amazement as she saw a car flying past the front of their car. Damon caught her expression and smirked.

"Welcome to my favorite place." He said as he unbuckled his straps then leaned over to help Elena with hers.

"Where are we?" Caroline asked, somewhat disbelievingly. There was no way they were somewhere reputable if everyone was able to drive like that and not have police interference.

"Can't tell you the exact location, Blondie. Club rules. But its close enough to civilization that you could walk back to the bar in a reasonable amount of time. Thinking of leaving us?" He laughed as he opened his car door to get out. The sound grew incredibly louder as the door opened. Damon stepped out of the car and reached down to move his seat forward, letting Bonnie and Caroline out. Caroline gave him a dirty look as she stretched her long legs out of the car. As she lifted herself out, her senses were assaulted with sounds and smells that she wasn't used to. She could smell burning rubber mixed with other things that she couldn't identify. The music was louder than she had expected from in the car, and there were different songs coming from different directions, as if there were 10 different songs playing at once. She could hear engine revving and tires squealing, along with the sounds of car doors slamming and crowds of people. Looking around, she saw what must have been over a hundred cars. She could tell that they were in a huge parking lot, but all the cars were parked at an angle, some of them with their trunks open, others with their hoods up with crowds of people looking at each other's engines. She looked over the cars and noticed that the buildings around them all had graffiti covering the brick. She figured they must be just outside the populated part of town, which would kind of explain the lack of police interference. At this time of night, the police usually hung around the down town area to keep the bars safe.

Just as she was about to take a step in front of Damon's car she was almost thrown back by 3 cars speeding past her. Looking up and down the make shift road way, she could see people on either side cheering for what she could only assume was a race.

"Careful Blondie, don't want to have to scrape you off the road. They don't stop as fast as they accelerate and there's probably quite a bit of money resting on the winner." Damon warned her. Caroline looked from side to side, taking in all the cars, noting how sleek and stylized they were. Back in her home town, she was used to trucks being lifted, but here it looked like all the cars would be lucky if they made it over a speed bump. She noticed that while some were definitely flashier than others, every one that she saw , regardless of how much chrome it had, was polished to perfection. She had never seen this many cars of this style in one place before. She was in awe of what was going on around her and couldn't help the smile that was forming on her face.

"I told you it wouldn't be so bad once you got here" Elena's voice suddenly came from beside her. She hadn't heard her friend walk up, which meant she had been pretty distracted. "It's pretty neat, huh? Ive been asking Damon forever to take me out with his friends, but this is the first time. It makes sense why he spends so much time with his car now, though. I mean, having to compete with this all the time, I guess I understand." Caroline just nodded her head. She really didn't care about Damon's time and how he spent it, but Elena was right, this was pretty spectacular.


	4. Chapter 4

**Things have been crazy on my end, with all the holiday festivities combined with school and work. The next chapter will start the actual fun stuff, since this just finishes the basics of getting to know the characters. :) **

Klaus looked out the window of his steel grey Nissan GTR, glancing around at all the people staring toward him and his siblings. Like every other night, they had waited until after most people got to the site, then pulled in single file, letting everyone get a good look at their cars. He never saw the point in creating such hype, but Rebekah and Kol loved the attention they received, and Elijah demanded they all ride together. Klaus would have been just as happy getting there early, letting him in on more races and earning him a bigger pay out at the end of the night. While money had never really been an issue for the family, having been left a large sum when their father died, he still found it nice to have the extra cash, and sometimes extra cars, just to have fun with.

He followed his siblings to a few open spots on the lot, parking at an angle to match the other cars. Before he shifted into park, he made sure to turn his wheels just enough to make his wheels stand out. He had replaced them with a brand new set of CCW classics with a matte black center, and polished outer lip since they had last been here, and he wanted to make sure that the photographers were able to get good pictures of them. They sat perfectly on his car and he couldn't wait to see the newest article written about them, which would most likely feature a full spread on his car. While he liked to maintain a certain level of personal anonymity himself, he let his car take the spotlight regularly. It was his pride and joy, so seeing magazine articles praising his car was a huge compliment toward him.

He shut off his car and stepped out onto the black top. After pressing the truck release, he took out his quick detailing spray and a few shammy cloths, knowing that his younger siblings would be over to borrow it. They always claimed they "forgot" theirs, but he knew better. Walking back to the front of his car, he glanced down the roadway and took in how good their cars all looked together. Elijah's car, a black BMW M3 came first, since he tended to take the lead at everything he did. Katherine's car was parked directly next to his. She had a red convertible BMW Z4 with cream interior. It had been a gift for her a few years ago, when she had finally decided that she wanted to learn how to properly modify and race with the rest of them. Elijah had been ecstatic, having been trying to convince her for years to get in on the family hobby. When she started to show a true interest, he went out and bought her her own car soon after.

Rebekah and Kol's cars were always in the middle, switching for third or fourth in line depending on their mood. Being the youngest, they hadn't fully embraced the idea of responsibility, leading to far more speeding tickets than either of them needed. Elijah always insisted they stay in the middle on nights like these, convincing them to do so by stressing how much a ticket would ruin a fun night out. Kol's car was flashier and much louder than the rest of theirs. He had pulled the spare tire out of the trunk space of his white Nissan S15 Silvia and installed a top of the line subwoofer with speakers to match. Klaus thought that it was a bit much, but Kol liked it, so it only gave him a little bit of hell for it.

Squatting down next to his front bumper, he sprayed the quick detailer and began to polish off the bit of dirt he had picked up from the road.

"Aye, throw it over here then." He heard Kol yell to him over the noise of crowd. Klaus rolled his eyes. He stood up and inspected the rest of the front bumper. When satisfied that it looked in top order, he tossed the bottle and the shammies into Kol's waiting hands.

"About time." Kol smirked at him. Looking past him, Kol's smirk turned into a smile. "Stefan, my man, good to see you!" Klaus turned around to see his long time friend walking toward them. He smiled at him.

"Good to see you, mate." Klaus told Stefan as he shook his hand, pulling him into a half hug, "Long time no see."

"Hey Klaus. Hey, rest of the Michelsons and Kat." Stefan smiled and called to the family. He had been friends with the family for years, being one of the few people to break through the strong barrier they built around themselves. He had always been closest with Klaus, even though he was much closer in age to Kol. The two had sparked an instant kinship, evolving into a genuine friendship, the first Klaus had ever had outside of the family. They didn't get to see each other very often anymore, but were still very close.

"My brother is coming tonight, as a heads up. He is brining his new girlfriend and some other people. I guess he wants to show off for her." Stefan told Klaus, almost exasperatedly. Damon, Stefan's brother, and Klaus had never gotten along. To Klaus, Damon was nothing more than a petulant child who was used to getting anything he wanted. A career student, he was the same age as Klaus, almost 26, and was still hanging out at the university like he was 20. He had never graduated, which Klaus didn't have a problem with, not having finished his degree himself. The problem he had with Damon started when Damon and Stefan's parents died and he had decided that he was going to make Stefan take on the full responsibility of their parents' assets and companies and depend on Stefan and his trust fund to fund every one of his endeavors. Stefan was too nice of a guy to make Damon step up and be a grown up, so Klaus stayed irritated for the both of them.

"Oh, lovely. And will he be racing this evening? I would hate to show his new girlfriend was a loser he is on and off the track." Klaus replied with a smile. His greatest joy in life was beating Damon in street racing, and at life.

"Eh, he may. I'm sure he will want to show off all the new ridiculous parts his trust fun just paid to put on his car. I mean, paying for that much chrome was definitely worth his trying to expense his electric bill this month..." Stefan rolled his eyes at Damon's behavior.

"You need to cut him off, mate. His turn at sucking money from your father's company needs to be over. Make him get a real job in the real world." Klaus said, sounding like a broken record even to himself. It was an old argument. Stefan knew what he needed to do, but knowing and actually executing were two different things. He always felt bad for Damon because he knew that he had taken their parents' death the hardest, and always wanted to give him just a little bit longer to grow up on his own. Stefan always hoped that Damon would make the choice to do the right thing on his own. Stefan chuckled at Klaus' persistence in the matter.

"I know, I know. But not tonight. Tonight, we have fun and forget about what a spoiled brat my brother is. I like the new wheels. They look good." Klaus laughed at Stefan subject changed, but humored him.

"Thanks. She needed a change. I wouldn't want her to stop being the talk of the town now, would I?" Klaus smiled. Kol and Rebekah walked up beside them and Kol shoved the shammies and spray into Klaus hands.

"Stefan, how lovely to see you" Rebekah greeted Stefan, batting her lashes just a bit too much. It was no surprise to Klaus and Kol, Stefan and their sister had flirted back and forth for years, but nothing had ever come of it. Klaus didn't mind the flirting, but knew that he would have to rethink the issue if it ever grew into anything more. He loved Stefan like a brother, but the idea of anyone dating his baby sister still bothered him.

"Bex, you look nice tonight." Stefan smiled. "How about we walk around and take in some of the other talent? See what we may be up against?" He offered her his arm.

"Sounds great!" Kol replied, laughing and looping his arm around Stefan's and starting to walk, talking Stefan off guard. "I need to get my name on the list for some races anyway." Klaus and Rebekah both laughed with Kol and started walking behind them. They could hear Elijah and Katherine chuckling from their cars at Kol's antics.

"Come on, Kat, let's go sign up to show these boys who is boss." Rebekah called out to her friend, smiling. Katherine and Elijah joined them, pocketing their keys, knowing that, surrounded by other car enthusiast, no harm would come to their cars.


	5. Chapter 5

**I apologize for this taking so long. I could give excuses of my classes kicking my ass or working being a bear (both of which are true), but the honest truth is, if I had put more effort in, I would have gotten it done sooner. For some reason, I had serious writer's block right in the middle, before the big introduction and had to force the rest out. I can write them fine separately, I can write them fine once they know each other, but for some reason, the meeting itself was damn near impossible to write. I hope you like it. 3**

Caroline and Bonnie followed behind Damon and Elena, enjoying the atmosphere. They had been walking around for a while and even though she had no idea what she was looking at, she admired all the cars they passed, noting all the similarities and differences between all of them. She was trying her hardest to ignore the couple walking in front of them, though they were making it difficult. Damon kept finding it necessary to reach down and grab Elena's butt, leaning in close to whisper things in her ear before pointing at cars. She wanted to assume he was whispering things about the cars and races, but she knew that probably wasn't the case, if the giggles Elena kept making was any indication. If that wasn't bad enough, every time Elena would look away from him, he would look back at them, wink and smirk. She didn't know if it was a way of bragging about his hands all over Elena or a suggestion for them. Either way, it weirded her out.

Looking over at Bonnie, Caroline could tell the girl was enjoying herself. She had a smile permanently attached to her face and her head kept going back and forth, looking from one side of the aisle to the other. Bonnie seemed to either not notice Damon's antics or be doing a far better job than she was at ignoring him. She decided that she would take a leaf out of Bonnie's book and try harder to ignore them.

"Caroline?" Caroline was suddenly pulled from her thoughts by the sound of her name.

"Huh?" She knew she sounded less than suave by her response, looking around for the source of familiarity. Her eyes landed on someone she hadn't seen in a few months. "Stefan?!" She ran up to a boy with tousled brown hair, his face comprised of well blended, prominent features. Stefan smiled as Caroline hugged him.

"Aw, it's great to see you too, Care. But what are you doing here with my brother?" Stefan asked. His eyes darkened a bit as they glanced toward Damon, who had pulled Elena over to them upon hearing the commotion.

"Nice to see you too, baby bro" Damon smirked toward Stefan.

"Brother?" Caroline asked.

"My brother. I know I mentioned that I had one." Caroline nodded, remembering him telling her about his brother who couldn't quite grow up. It made more sense to her now.

"And how do you know Blondie, here, brother?" Damon asked. Caroline noted a bit of possessiveness to his question, which instantly set her on edge.

"Caroline and I have had a bunch of classes together over the semesters. We have had a few study groups together, too." Stefan respond, raising an eyebrow at the tone in Damon's voice.

"It's so great to see you again; it's definitely been too long! I've been taking all degree specific classes this semester, but I haven't even seen you around campus!." Caroline tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, taking an involuntary step away from Damon and Elena. Elena had wrapped her arms tightly around Damon's waist, but still managed to make doe eyes at Stefan. It made her want to grab Stefan's arm and drag him away from the two of them so they could catch up with out the interruptions. Stefan had been a rock for her during her first few semesters on campus. They never became the best of friends or anything romantic, but seeing him around campus so much gave her another familiar, friendly face to say hello to.

"Yeah, I actually didn't come back this semester. I needed to dedicate more time to keeping my father's company in order. I'm going to go back in the fall though; things should be caught up enough by then for me to take a few classes. I'll probably come back part time." Caroline knew enough about the company, from what Stefan had mentioned, to know that he had taken on a big responsibility when his parent's had died, He had always been so determined to make school and the company work, and not give up either. It made her sad that he had to put his education on hold, even for a little while.

"Well, I'll be glad to see you next semester. The campus is boring without you." Caroline smiled at him.

"Hey," Bonnie smiled from beside her. "I resent that! I make plenty of excitement for you." Caroline laughed with her.

"Stefan, you remember my friend Bonnie?" Stefan nodded, laughing with them.

"How are you, Bonnie?" He asked, still chuckling.

"I'm great, Stefan. I'm glad you will be saving Caroline from how boring I am next semester." Bonnie answered, obviously joking with him. Looking up, Caroline could see that Damon and Elena had wandered off, no doubt to take advantage of the alone time with more mind scarring PDA.

"It looks like we've been abandoned, Bon." Bonnie looked up, spotting Damon and Elena a few rows over, very wrapped up in each other.

"Oh darn, we won't get to see any more of the icky groping." Bonnie laughed. "Oh, I'm sorry. I forgot you mentioned he was your brother." Bonnie stated, suddenly looking guilty.

"Don't even worry about it." Stefan replied. "I've heard far worse, and will probably continue to hear worse for the rest of my life. I could tell you stories of just how bad he can be. How did you two even come to be around him, anyway? He doesn't seem like someone you would ever be friends with."

"We only know him through Elena, the brunette puppy dog hanging off his side. She is a friend of ours from back home and has been begging us to spend time with them for weeks now. Tonight is actually our first time meeting him." Caroline answered, rolling her eyes at her long time friend's earlier behavior.

"Well, I'm glad he brought you guys here. Is this your first time to one of these?" Stefan gestured around to the cars.

"Yes! And it is kind of amazing!" Bonnie replied. Stefan smiled at them.

"Well, since you have apparently been ditched by the rest of your party, why don't you guys come with me. I'll introduce you to the people I'm here with. You'll like them, I promise. You guys will get the inside scoop from some real racers. Damon likes to pretend he races and has a name out here, but that much chrome slows you down a bit." The girls laughed and nodded at him. "Follow me." Stefan said, then turned and started back toward the direction he had originally came.

They made their way up over to a group of people a few rows over. Caroline instantly noticed how close they all looked. She could tell just from their body language that they were a tight knit group.

"Guys, this is Caroline and Bonnie. Girls, this is Elijah, Klaus, Kol, Katherine, and Rebekah." Stefan motioned to each as he mentioned their name, indicating who he was introducing. Caroline and Bonnie said their hellos, nodding at each as their name was called.

"I haven't seen you out here before. Are you new? Are you racing?" Rebekah asked the girls, somewhat offensively. Caroline couldn't help notice the way that Rebekah moved a bit closer to Stefan as she spoke.

"Easy Bekah, not everyone is out to dethrone you, sister." Kol laughed.

"Oh, no. This is our first time even seeing something like this. I never even knew anything like this existed." Bonnie answered, a slight blush to her cheeks as she looked Kol up and down.

"Then how are you ladies enjoying it so far?" Elijah asked.

"More importantly, who brought you? We don't really need people coming in here by the hoards. Word would get back to the cops and this entire thing would be ruined." Caroline was taken aback by the rudeness of the questions and instantly went on the defensive.

"Klaus, really..."

"I really don't consider the two of us to be _hoards of people_." Caroline spoke over Stefan, who was trying to defuse Klaus' typical reaction, her eyes glaring. She turned back to Elijah and Stefan, invisibly blocking Klaus out.

"We are really enjoying it now. We came with our friend and her boyfriend, who we just found out is Stefan's brother. It had been a little awkward until Stefan saved us. Thank you." Klaus became visibly angry when she revealed that they had come with Damon. She rolled her eyes at his obvious response. "I'm sure you all feel the same way about Damon, if you are all as close to Stefan as he has implied. I don't feel great about him either." Klaus' shoulders relaxed a bit toward the end of her speech, apparently happy that they agreed Damon was a slimeball. "So since I have been forth coming, now it's your turn. Are you all like a car gang or something?"

The dark haired woman laughed at this question. Stefan had introduced her as Katherine. "A car gang? Oh, lord. They wish. No, Elijah," She laid her hand on Elijah's chest from where she was tucked under his arm. "Klaus, Kol and Bekah are brothers and sisters. I've been with the family for as long as I can remember. Stefan stumbled in a few years ago and he and Klaus have been inseparable ever since." Caroline thought that there may be a bit more to the dynamic than that, but she was an outsider to their obviously very close knit group and knew that some stuff was private. She didn't fail to notice how close Stefan and Rebekah seemed, or the fact that Elijah had his arm wrapped tightly around Katherine. She smiled at Katherine, who had been the friendliest so far, aside from Elijah.

She proceeded to ask questions about their cars and driving, things that seemed like safe subjects. She didn't want them to think she was trying to pry, even though it was in her nature to be curious about people. She was surprised to learn that the family had been racing for as long as they had been driving. Elijah led her and Bonnie over to the family's line of cars and he and Katherine answered any questions they had. She learned more in that time than she had the entire time she had been with Damon and Elena. She was pleased and felt empowered to learn that Katherine and Rebekah raced as well, usually winning and bringing home plenty of winnings. _Girl Power!_ she thought to herself.

Klaus stayed toward the back of the group, not offering any information to them at all. She couldn't help but notice that he looked like he was pouting. She guessed that he probably wasn't used to people snapping back at him, but was glad that it had been her to take him down a notch. She also couldn't help but notice the perfect color of his lips, or the way his wavy hair sat on his head. She also tried very hard to ignore the way his biceps flexed when he crossed his arms over his chest in mid pout. It boggled her mind that someone could be attractive while acting like an ass, but he somehow pulled it off.

She was pulled from her musings when Rebekah. "Since you girls have never seen a race before, you should see a real race to pop your cherry." Rebekah grinned devilishly. "I'm racing next, so make sure you're close to the sides. I'll try not to blow too much exhaust in your faces. " She winked and climbed behind the wheel of her car. Caroline saw Klaus walk up to her passenger side window and lowered his head in. He whispered to the blonde, but Caroline was still close enough to here him tell her to be careful.

"Every time, brother. I will be. I love you." Rebekah replied quietly. Klaus responded, this time too low for Caroline to hear. When he raised his head from the car window, he had a soft smile on his face. She was startled, but pleasantly noted how much cuter he was when he wasn't scowling. Never one to be shy around people she just met, she walked around the back of the car toward him as Rebekah pulled out of her spot and everyone else made with way to the side of the make shift drag strip. Watching Rebekah's car make it's way down to the end of the strip, she stopped at Klaus' side.

"So you're not a total asshole, I see." She managed to keep a bit of bite to her voice. She wasn't going to let him off the hook that easily.

"I don't know what you are talking about." The scowl returned to his face, but not quite as severe has it had been earlier.

"Mhmm." Caroline glanced at him from the corner of his eye. Klaus' eyes were locked on Rebekah's car.

"Go on, you better get up there. If she finds out you missed part of her race, there'll be hell to pay. I'd hate to see her kill you before I get to know you better." Caroline smiled and went to stand between Bonnie and Stefan. She knew she still wanted an apology from him for acting like an ass, but it could wait until after the race.


End file.
